Jack Eichel

Jack Eichel
Eichel with the Sabres in 2016
Born (1996-10-28) October 28, 1996
North Chelmsford, Massachusetts, U.S.
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight 196 lb (89 kg; 14 st 0 lb)
Position Center
Shoots Right
NHL team Buffalo Sabres
National team  United States
NHL Draft 2nd overall, 2015
Buffalo Sabres
Playing career 2015–present

Jack Robert Eichel (born October 28, 1996)[1] is an American professional ice hockey centre currently serving as the captain for the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League. Eichel was selected second overall in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft by the Buffalo Sabres. Described at the age of 17 as "the new face of American hockey," Eichel is considered a member of a rising class of generational talents in the sport, along with Connor McDavid.[2][3]

Eichel was the recipient of the 2015 Hobey Baker Award, given to the top National Collegiate Athletic Association men's ice hockey player.[4] He was the second freshman to win the award and the first since Paul Kariya in 1993.[5]

Playing career

Amateur

Eichel played for the USA Hockey National Team Development Program team during the 2012–13 and 2013–14 seasons,[6] and was recognized for his outstanding play during the 2013–14 season when he was named to the United States Hockey League Second All-Star Team.[7] After his second season within the Development Program, Eichel signed a letter of intent to commit to Boston University of the Hockey East on April 29, 2014.[8]

On April 10, 2015, Eichel became the second freshman to win the Hobey Baker Award, which was previously won by Paul Kariya in 1993. In 40 games with Boston University, Eichel led the nation in scoring with 26 goals, 45 assists, and 71 points. Eichel was also the Hockey East scoring champion, Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year, First Team Hockey East and a member of the All-Rookie Team, and was named MVP of the conference tournament. Eichel was projected to be the second overall selection in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft behind projected first overall pick Connor McDavid.[9]

Professional

On June 26, 2015, Eichel was selected 2nd overall by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, one pick after the Edmonton Oilers selected Connor McDavid. In the months leading up to the draft, considerable interest and hype arose surrounding Eichel and McDavid, both seen as generational talents.[3] For example, the sports section of the Buffalo News regularly published the "McEichel Derby," a graphic of the teams at the bottom of the standings.[10] On July 1, 2015, Eichel signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Sabres.[11]

On August 13, 2015, Eichel signed a sponsorship deal with Bauer Hockey, which states Eichel will wear its equipment exclusively and Bauer will provide him with its apparel.[12]

Eichel scored his first NHL goal on October 8, 2015, becoming the youngest player in Sabres history to do so, in his first game in the NHL against the Ottawa Senators.[13] He finished his rookie campaign with 24 goals and 56 points in 81 games, being the Sabres' top goalscorer and second in points (after Ryan O'Reilly) and second in both criteria among rookies, after Artemi Panarin. On October 12, 2016, Eichel suffered a severe high ankle sprain to his left ankle in practice and had to be helped off of the ice;[14] he missed the first two months of the season before making his season debut on November 29. He finished the year with 24 goals and 33 assists in just 61 games.[15]

Before the 2017–18 season, on October 3, 2017, the Sabres signed Eichel to an eight-year, $80 million contract extension worth $10 million annually. The contract is set to begin at the start of the 2018–19 season.[16] On December 15, 2017, Eichel scored his first career hat trick against the Carolina Hurricanes in a 5-4 loss.[17] On January 11, 2018, Eichel was selected as the sole representative of the Sabres for the 2018 NHL All-Star game. This was the first NHL All-Star game of Eichel's career.[18] During a game in February against the Boston Bruins, Eichel sprained his ankle and was ruled out for 4–6 weeks.[19] He returned 15 games later to help the Sabres beat the Chicago Blackhawks for the first time since 2009.[20] Eichel finished the 2017-18 season with 25 goals and 39 assists for a total of 64 points in only 67 games.

During the summer before the 2018–19 season, Eichel revealed he would change his jersey number from 15 to 9, the same number he wore at Boston University.[21] On October 3, 2018, before the beginning of the regular season, Eichel was named the captain of the Sabres.[22]

International play

Medal record
Representing  United States
Men's ice hockey
World Championships
2015 Czech Republic
IIHF World U18 Championship
2014 Finland
2013 Russia

As a 15-year-old Eichel represented the United States at the 2012 Winter Youth Olympics.[23] He won a bronze medal with Team USA at the 2013 World U-17 Hockey Challenge[24] and a silver medal at the 2013 IIHF World U18 Championships.[25] The following season he helped the USA squad capture the gold medal at the 2014 IIHF World U18 Championships,[26] and he competed as a 17-year-old as Team USA's youngest player at the 2014 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.[27] Eichel represented Team USA in the 2015 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship. At the conclusion of his freshman season with the Terriers, Eichel was named to make his full international debut with Team USA at the 2015 World Championships.[28] Eichel scored 2 goals, including a game winner in the group stage against Slovakia, and 5 assists during the tournament, where Team USA won bronze.[29] Eichel was selected to the 2017 Team USA IIHF World Championship roster.[30] Team USA was elimited in the quarter finals and placed 5th overall. Eichel recorded zero goals and five assists in eight games at the championship.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2012–13 U.S. National Development Team USHL 35 13 14 27 14 — — — — —
2013–14 U.S. National Development Team USHL 24 20 25 45 20 — — — — —
2014–15 Boston University HE 40 26 45 71 28 — — — — —
2015–16 Buffalo Sabres NHL 81 24 32 56 22 — — — — —
2016–17 Buffalo Sabres NHL 61 24 33 57 22 — — — — —
2017–18 Buffalo Sabres NHL 67 25 39 64 32 — — — — —
NHL totals 2097310417776 —————

International

Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2013 United States U17 3rd, bronze medalist(s) 5 3 0 3 2
2013 United States WJC18 2nd, silver medalist(s) 7 1 1 2 6
2014 United States WJC18 1st, gold medalist(s) 7 5 5 10 2
2014 United States WJC 5th 5 1 4 5 0
2015 United States WJC 5th 5 1 3 4 6
2015 United States WC 3rd, bronze medalist(s) 10 2 5 7 8
2016 Team North America WCH 5th 3 1 1 2 0
2017 United States WC 5th 8 0 5 5 4
Junior totals 29 11 13 24 16
Senior totals 21 3 11 14 12

Awards and honors

Award Year
NHL
NHL All-Rookie Team 2015–16 [31]
NHL All-Star 2018 [18]
USHL
USHL Second All-Star Team 2013–14 [32]
College
HE All-Rookie Team 2015
HE Rookie of the Year 2015
HE First All-American Team 2015
HE First All-Star Team 2015
HE Player of the Year 2015
HE Champions 2015
HE Tournament MVP 2015
HE Scoring Champion 2015
HE Three Stars Award 2015
NCAA Rookie of the Year 2015
Hobey Baker Award 2015 [33]
International
Winter Youth Olympics 2012 [34]
World U-17 Hockey Challenge Bronze Medal 2013 [35]
IIHF World U18 Championship Silver Medal 2013 [36]
IIHF World U18 Championship Gold Medal 2014 [37]
CCM/USA Hockey All-American Prospects Game MVP 2014

References

  1. ↑ "Jack Eichel Stats and News". NHL.com (in en_US). Retrieved 2017-03-15.
  2. ↑ Klein, Jeff Z. (2014-10-02). "At 17, Jack Eichel Is Seen as the New Face of American Hockey". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-03-14.
  3. 1 2 Mather, Victor (2015-10-07). "Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel Heralded as N.H.L.'s Next Stars". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-03-14.
  4. ↑ "Boston University's Jack Eichel wins Hobey Baker Award". Boston Globe. 2015-04-10. Retrieved 2015-04-10.
  5. ↑ May, Peter (2015-03-28). "Big Decision (and Plenty of Advice) for Hockey Prospect". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-03-14.
  6. ↑ "Player Feature – Eichel Uses Experience to Motivate". USA Hockey. 2014-04-15.
  7. ↑ "Top 2014 prospects highlight USHL All-Star teams".
  8. ↑ "Jack Eichel signs Letter of Intent to play college hockey at Boston University". SB Nation College Hockey. 2014-04-29. Retrieved 2014-04-29.
  9. ↑ Mahoney, Andrew (April 10, 2015). "Boston University's Jack Eichel wins Hobey Baker Award". The Boston Globe. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  10. ↑ Harrington, Mike (March 22, 2015). "The McEichel Derby: It may be a two-team race as Oilers pull out OT win over Flyers while Sabres, Coyotes lose again". buffalonews.com. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  11. ↑ "Sabres sign Eichel to entry-level contract". Buffalo Sabres. 2015-07-01. Retrieved 2015-07-01.
  12. ↑ "Eichel signs sponsorship deal with Bauer Hockey". tsn.ca. August 13, 2015. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  13. ↑ Wharnsby, Tim (October 9, 2015). "Sabres forward Jack Eichel scores in NHL debut". NHL.com. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  14. ↑ "Eichel won't play for U.S. at worlds, needs rest".
  15. ↑ https://www.hockey-reference.com/players/e/eicheja01.html
  16. ↑ "Sabres, Eichel agree to terms on extension". NHL.com. October 3, 2017. Retrieved October 4, 2017.
  17. ↑ The Canadian Press (15 December 2017). "Slavin scores OT winner as Hurricanes top Sabres". TSN.ca. Buffalo, NY: TSN. Retrieved 16 December 2017.
  18. 1 2 Yerdon, Joe (January 11, 2018). "Eichel honored to represent Sabres at All-Star Game". NHL.com. Retrieved February 8, 2018.
  19. ↑ "Sabres' Eichel out 4 to 6 weeks with sprained right ankle". sportsnet.ca. February 11, 2018. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  20. ↑ Yerdon, Joe (March 17, 2018). "Eichel has assist in return, Sabres top Blackhawks". nhl.com. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  21. ↑ "Eichel unveils new, old number, former teammate Kane chimes in". NHL.com. July 6, 2018. Retrieved July 7, 2018.
  22. ↑ "Sabres name Eichel captain". TSN.ca. October 3, 2018. Retrieved October 3, 2018.
  23. ↑ "Eichel To Represent Team Usa At Youth Olympics". Boston Junior Bruins. 2011-11-02.
  24. ↑ "Top U.S. prospect Jack Eichel serves notice at world junior".
  25. ↑ USPHL: Five Alumni Invited To World Junior Camp Archived September 23, 2014, at the Wayback Machine.
  26. ↑ "U.S. captures gold medal at U-18 Worlds".
  27. ↑ Reserved., . All Rights (December 30, 2013). "Age doesn't hinder American Jack Eichel at World Juniors".
  28. ↑ "Jack Eichel named to Team USA for World Champs". USAToday. 2015-04-18. Retrieved 2015-04-18.
  29. ↑ Hamilton, Paul (2015-05-17). "Eichel and the U.S. win bronze". WGR 550. Retrieved 2015-05-17.
  30. ↑ "Eichel Added to 2017 U.S. Men's National Team". usahockey.com. Colorado Springs, Colo. 19 April 2017. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
  31. ↑ "NHL announces All-Rookie Team".
  32. ↑ "All-USHL First and Second Teams Named for 2013–14".
  33. ↑ "Boston University's Jack Eichel wins Hobey Baker Award – The Boston Globe".
  34. ↑ "U.S. Youth Olympic Team Settles for Fourth – Amateur Hockey News – January 21, 2012".
  35. ↑ "USA's Jack Eichel, 17, already turning heads".
  36. ↑ "2014 U18 Video: Jack Eichel, USA – Hockey's Future". April 28, 2014.
  37. ↑ Notebook (April 28) – Team USA Captures Gold at U18 Worlds | USA Hockey
Awards and achievements
Preceded by
Johnny Gaudreau		 Hockey East Player of the Year
2014–15		 Succeeded by
Kevin Boyle
Thatcher Demko
Preceded by
Mario Puskarich		 Hockey East Rookie of the Year
2014–15		 Succeeded by
Colin White
Preceded by
Connor Hellebuyck		 Hockey East Tournament MVP
2015		 Succeeded by
Kevin Boyle
Preceded by
Johnny Gaudreau		 Hockey East Scoring Champion
2014–15		 Succeeded by
Andrew Poturalski
Preceded by
Clay Witt		 Hockey East Three-Stars Award
2014–15		 Succeeded by
Kevin Boyle
Preceded by
Johnny Gaudreau		 Hobey Baker Award
2014–15		 Succeeded by
Jimmy Vesey
Preceded by
Sam Anas		 NCAA Ice Hockey National Rookie of the Year
2014–15		 Succeeded by
Kyle Connor
Preceded by
Sam Reinhart		 Buffalo Sabres first round draft pick
2015		 Succeeded by
Alexander Nylander
Sporting positions
Preceded by
Brian Gionta		 Buffalo Sabres captain
2018–present		 Succeeded by
Incumbent
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